How about a moment of brainstorming?

I'm fleshing out a story into something more novel length and my brain is outta practice when it comes to thinking creatively. Shocking thing to admit, yes, but true.

So I'm looking for other ways to call something a Bucket List. For me, Bucket List feels masculine and I'm trying to think of ways to refer to such a list in a feminine way. Currently, my character is simply saying The List, and I thought surely I could do better than that...but nope, not so far. So, ideas?

In this vein, I have the main hit points from her list down, but I'm looking for some more "talking points" to include on this list. For perspective, this is a mid-30s woman who is dissatisfied with her heretofore safe choices in life and so is going to do things that she feels are more in keeping with her "true self". This is in an erotic romance, but she's not interested in multiple partners, though sex with a stranger and voyeurism is on the list. But then, so is never wearing boring easy black and raising chickens. Its an eclectic list. Looking for some sort of "throwaway" ideas, things she can think about and talk about but may happen off stage. No trips, no traveling. Money not an issue. I'm not looking for anything too huge, as I've got those down, but some middle or small things would be gratefully received. Any ideas?

Thanks!

crossword said:

1. get a newer, sexier wardrobe

2. get a newer, sexier haircut
3. try eating at exotic restaurants she’s never eaten at before. Sample foreign cuisines she’s never tried before.

4. try a new hobby like skydiving. At least try out one lesson and see if she likes it. Also other possibilities like whitewater rafting, surfing, scuba diving.

5. go to a sex toy shop, buy some toys she’s never tried. Buy sexier lingerie.


As for what to call the Bucket List, i’ll give it some thought. there’s a ton of words sexier than Bucket but which would be right in this context?
HotList? Best I can think of for now. i’ll keep thinking, unless you think HotList is just right.

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Ohhh, this is so helpful, thank you!

I had her shopping, but dorky me failed to put it on her list and it definitely belongs there, as well as the haircut. Love the exotic restaurants and the sex toy shopping, exactly the sorts of things I was looking for!

And yes, Bucket List conjures up images af grumpy old men, and while I did love those two in the movie, that is not the impression I'm going for here.

Tazlima said:

I remember when the term "bucket list" came on the scene (as far as I know, it was coined by the film of the same name), and I've never really cared for the term. There's nothing wrong with it, it just kind of grates on my nerves.

Anyway, it was called a "bucket list," because it was things you wanted to do "before you kick the bucket." If you want something similar but different, I'd start by looking up a list of other colloquialiasms for death.

- Pushing up daisies
- bought the farm
- cash in your chips
- shuffle off this mortal coil
- ride the pale horse
- take a dirt nap.

There are tons more, but I like these. It's stuff you want to do BEFORE you die, so you might use words that would imply preparatory measures, i.e. "farm fund," "chip pile," "kitty chow," "riding tack," "soil prep," or *heehee*, "shuffleboard."

That's just off the top of my head, and some of these aren't great, but you can have a lot of fun with this kind of thing.

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Oh, this is so clever! This sort of thinking is what I really need to learn. You've given me ample food for thought as well as a cool technique for generating ideas. I stare at a screen or page of paper and think, what else could a bucket list be called? Never thought about going at it like this. Thank you!

MerriTudor said:

Have you got pole-dancing on her list?

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I do now!

The Do or Die is the idea, her mental state, but its not what I would want to label her list, I think, And Sleeping Beauty is precisely the concept, though somehow Sleeping Beauty List doesn't roll off the tongue...

ElaineA said:

I'd love to see something not implying "before I die," because based on your description, it's about changing/recovering her "true self" while she's young, not doing things before she can't anymore (which, as Tazlima points out, is what the bucket list is about).

[MC]'s 11-Step Program?

You maybe could commandeer the map term, legend? If she's "finding" herself, she could maybe think of it as a map back to her true self, with her own personal "sightseeing' stops as her goals?

(I dunno, I'm terrible at this.)

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Love this, as yes, this is why she's made the list. She doesn't want to wake up one morning and realize all the time she's lost, etc etc. The concept of a map, of making it back to her true self fits perfectly. I'm going to work this around in my lil brain a bit and see what I can come up with.

Tazlima said:

Ooh, I like this. Stuff about maps and compasses could go over big. Seeking out her "true north" kind of stuff. The term "windrose" is pretty and evocative. (A windrose is a drawing on a map or compass that shows the cardinal directions).

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I love love love "windrose". I'm loving the concept of a map. Wow, this is exactly what I miss about being in a writer's group and why I am thrilled to have discovered these forums.

Now I just need to learn how to multiquote, as this was a bunch!

Thank you!

yoghurtelf said:

The Live List?

as in "Time to liiiiive!" not as in "aaand we're live!"

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This is definitely the concept. I usually tend to simpler, too, so in that way it appeals. But I dunno, its just not feeling like the right name yet. Sigh. The Struggle.

frimble3 said:

Or, 'Life List'? No pronunciation problems, and it suggests 'Things to do with/in my life', rather than ticking off things to do 'before I die'. *There is a thing called a 'Life List', kept by birdwatchers, to list all the birds they're seen in their lives.
I also like the 'Sleeping Beauty's List' with the implication of waking up and really living.
I would bet, however, that in her head she just thinks of it as 'The List'.
How about something totally different, like 'The (Name) Project'?

As for smaller ideas for her list: colour her hair some non-hair colour. Get a tattoo. Listen to music in some genre she doesn't particularly like. Train for, and take part in, a distance run. (Doesn't have to be a marathon, there are lots of 5 and 10K runs around.) Volunteer to help some charity (that involves personal effort, not just writing a cheque). Build/fix up something with her own hands for her apartment. Learn a craft/skill.

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More awesome suggestions.

I like the idea of calling it a project, too. First thing that popped into my head was The Windrose Project. Hmmm, gonna have to think.

And fabulous ideas for adding onto the list. Going to listen to different music and the volunteering would fit perfectly, story-wise, too.
Thanks!